American School, mid-19th century PORTRAIT OF A WOMAN, SAID TO BE FROM THE LONGWORTH FAMILY, CINCINNATI, OHIO, HALF LENGTH SEATED IN A BROWN DRESS, A VINE TO HER RIGHT Inscribed verso 'Catawba Grape, Ohio, Longworth family', oil on canvas 81 x 66cm The Longworth family is closely associated with Cincinnati, Ohio and was founded by Nicholas Longworth (1783-1863), a banker and winemaker known as the 'father of American grape culture'. He planted a vineyard of the Catawba grape on the Ohio River outside the city and began making sparkling wine using the champagne method. Both still and sparkling wine were exported widely, from California to Europe, and his wines were also popular among the many German immigrants who were arriving in Ohio. The peak of its production was reached in 1859, but in the 1860s the vines were decimated by mildew and many vineyards were either torn up or abandoned with the advent of the Civil War.